Warriors: Rainfeather's Honor

Chapter Two

Rainpaw padded back into camp later that day exhausted. They had gone out to see the entire territory. They'd visited every border, even the ones that weren't hemmed in by other Clans. The forest was much bigger than she'd thought and her paws ached from walking.

"Wasn't that amazing?" Rainpaw's sister fell in step beside her. Floodpaw's dark ginger pelt was blazing in the retreating sunlight.

"Yeah," Rainpaw replied.

"You can all get something to eat and then go to bed. Tomorrow we'll be working on hunting skills," Thrushswoop, Torrentpaw's mentor, said. The littermates went to the fresh-kill pile to pick out a piece of prey.

"Do you want to share this?" A meow sounded behind Rainpaw. Turning, she saw that it was Wolfpaw holding a plump vole. His eyes were two different colors, one blue and one brown, just like his father, Foxfang.

"Sure." The two apprentices settled down beside each other to eat the vole. After taking a few bites, Wolfpaw spoke.

"How was your first day?" he asked.

"It was cool. I didn't realize how big the territory was." Rainpaw sunk her teeth into the vole's flesh once more. When she looked up again, she saw Stonepaw looking at her. The golden tom with a striped tail just like his father, Beesting, was glaring at her.

I wonder what that's all about. Caught up in her thoughts, she missed what Wolfpaw had said.

"What was that, Wolfpaw?" Her ears burned with embarrassment.

The gray tom rolled his oddly colored eyes. "I said, I can't wait to train with you." He nudged her shoulder.

"I can't wait either." Rainpaw blinked her green eyes warmly at him. Together they finished the vole, then got up and went into the apprentice den. The setting sun cast through the leafy wall of the den, turning the inside of the den green. Stormpaw, Wasppaw, and Rushpaw were already there, talking and grooming.

Rainpaw sat in her mossy nest and started to groom her whiskers. While she was washing her face, Floodpaw joined her in the nest next to Rainpaw's. Stonepaw entered the den and shot a dark look at her and Wolfpaw. Floodpaw noticed and glanced at her sister.

"What was that about?" she questioned.

Rainpaw paused with a paw over her ear. She set her foot down and shrugged. "I don't know. He's been acting like someone made dirt in his fresh-kill since we got back."

Floodpaw stood up. "I'm gonna go ask him." She started to pick her way around the nests.

"Okay, but I'm going to sleep, so don't bother me." Rainpaw called to her. Floodpaw looked over shoulder and rolled her eyes. Rainpaw finished grooming herself and started to curl up. Another body pressed into her.

"I hope you don't mind if I sleep here. This is my nest after all." It was Wolfpaw. The young tom was settled in his nest and Rainpaw had accidentally made her own nest quite close to his.

"I'm sorry. I can move my nest." The silver-blue she-cat made to get up and drag her nest closer to the wall of the den, but Wolfpaw put his tail over her.

"Don't bother," he said. "It gets pretty cold at night anyway. You'll be warmer if you sleep near another cat."

Rainpaw nodded and wriggled closer to him. He curled his tail over his stomach to make room for her. She quickly fell asleep with Wolfpaw's whiskers brushing her face.